BAE Systems this week is showcasing a fourth prototype version of its Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle (AMPV) mounted with a weapons payload using the company’s new universal top plate, bringing a version outfitted with Oshkosh Defense
’s [OSK] Medium Caliber Weapon System (MCWS) to the Eurosatory trade show in Paris.
The company said bringing an AMPV with the 30mm MCWS gun turret, currently set to be fielded on Stryker vehicles, is an opportunity to highlight the potential to “integrate capabilities and equipment packages internationally” with the new External Mission Equipment Package (ExMEP) top plate.
“This latest prototype demonstrates the capabilities of a common top plate and the options it provides our allies and NATO partners for rapid integration of next-generation technology onto a proven vehicle,” Bill Sheehy, BAE Systems’ AMPV program director, said in a statement. “The adaptability of the AMPV design means we are able to execute new capability integration quickly and efficiently, further proving the platform’s future-proofed design.”
BAE Systems first detailed its recently developed ExMEP universal top plate last October at the AUSA Conference in Washington, D.C., unveiling a counter-drone version of the platform outfitted with the same Moog [MOG.A] Reconfigurable Integrated-weapons Platform (RIwP) turret that’s on the Army’s Stryker Maneuver Short Range Air Defense (M-SHORAD) platform (Defense Daily, Oct. 9).
The company at the time noted the modular top plate allowed for the rapid integration of new payloads and could open possibilities for future variants of the AMPV platform.
“The vehicle’s ExMEP can adapt to more than 30 different turret systems and builds on the vehicle’s modularity. This creates a seamless path for international customers to address various mission needs with the AMPV platform,” BAE Systems said on Monday.
BAE Systems currently produces five variants of the AMPV, the Army’s replacement for its legacy M113 armored personnel carriers: a general purpose vehicle, a mortar carrier, a medical evacuation platform, a medical treatment vehicle and a mission command platform.
Since October, BAE Systems conducted a successful live-fire demo with the AMPV C-UAS prototype in November and then delivered a turreted mortar version of the platform to the Army for testing that utilized the top plate to integrate a Kongsberg and Patria 120mm weapon system (Defense Daily, March 8).
In March, BAE Systems showcased a third prototype version of the platform utilizing the new ExMEP top plate, bringing an AMPV mounted with Elbit America’s [ESLT] UT30 unmanned turret to the AUSA Global Force Symposium in Huntsville, Alabama (Defense Daily, March 28).
Now BAE Systems will have the fourth prototype AMPV, this time outfitted with the Oshkosh Defense-supplied MCWS weapons payload, at this week’s Eurosatory trade show, Europe’s largest defense industry exhibition.
“We look forward to furthering conversations with our allied nations about how fast and effectively we can adapt the AMPV for any operation or role that’s needed,” Sheehy said.
The Army in June 2021 selected Oshkosh Defense for the Stryker MCWS program and awarded the company a potential $942 million deal, to include an initial $130 million delivery order covering 91 vehicles (Defense Daily, June 3 2021).
Oshkosh Defense is partnered with Pratt Miller Defense and Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems on the MCWS program, which integrates a 30mm, unmanned turreted auto-cannon to build out an upgunned fleet of Stryker DVHA1 Infantry Carrier Vehicles.
Last August, the Army approved AMPV for full-rate production and awarded BAE Systems a contract worth up to $1.6 billion, and in March placed a $754.3 million order for nearly 200 more vehicles (Defense Daily, March 13).